Almost all of the presenters at the recent public hearing on the federal government’s proposed carbon tax legislation complained about how it would affect them. It seemed so unfair.
This while the planet has moved into what has been called the sixth mass extinction — this time not caused by planetary forces but by the human species itself.
We are destroying our own home, but we’re too complacent to do anything.
The federal government has come under increasing international pressure to reduce Canada’s emissions and meet guidelines that came out of the Paris Accord and the two COP gatherings held last year. Developed countries such as ours have been accused of maintaining a privileged lifestyle regardless of the disastrous impacts on undeveloped nations who create almost none of it. We, not the planet which is only reflecting our choices back to us, are responsible for the death and suffering of hundreds of thousands of people elsewhere.
The federal government attempts to take a warrior stance against climate change but again and again, the biggest push back comes from Canadians themselves who are not prepared to sacrifice anything in this war. Many refused to even give up plastic bags. It’s embarrassing.
It’s not only us who will suffer the consequences of this push-back, it’s the world’s population and the kids to come. How will we explain our behaviour? What legacy we are leaving? How will we explain ourselves when they try to navigate their way through flooding, hurricanes, tornadoes and fire? We have seen the enemy and it’s ourselves.
In his presentation to government committee members at the hearing, Craig Scott, former longtime director of Ecology North, said, “The first thing I would like to say is that I believe we need to retire the refrain that the NWT is just a small place which doesn’t cause too many emissions. This argument doesn’t hold water and I don’t believe it’s responsible for our elected officials to use this as an excuse to not take climate action seriously. NWT has among the highest per capita emissions on the planet. We also have among the highest incomes. If we use this excuse then surely almost every other jurisdiction on the planet can do the same. By using this excuse for inaction we are dooming future generations to a difficult future…”
Where is the political will to join this battle? Where is the leadership, the creative thinking and bright new initiatives? This is no longer an issue for the back burner, it is THE issue. In fact, though it didn’t even it make the list on the newly installed government’s priority list after the last election, it must take the number one spot now.
With an election on the horizon, voters must pick leaders who are willing and able to deal with this challenging issue.
It is not enough to stand before the committee and complain about how federal legislation will negatively impact us — it is also our responsibility to offer solutions.
Scott offered several ideas for consideration, starting with conservation, electrification in the South Slave, wood harvesting with wood marshaling yards in the Dehcho, North Slave, Tlicho, Sathu and Gwich’in, and wood pellets stored in grain silos in the far North.
These are just a few of the suggestions outlined in his presentation but surely, with all of its technical expertise and bright minds, the GNWT can come up with and implement more.
We are in a fight for our lives and the government and elected leaders need to act that way.
In conclusion, Scott said, “…we need a government that is willing to think outside the box and buys into the concept that carbon emissions are bad for the NWT and the world. We need to embrace carbon taxes and please let’s bury this argument that the NWT is a small emitter and we shouldn’t have to do anything because we are tiny compared to Ontario and Alberta.”
GNWT, let’s show some leadership and act.